prima facie

UK:**UK and possibly other pronunciationsUK and possibly other pronunciations/ˌpraɪməˈfeɪʃi/

US:USA pronunciation: IPAUSA pronunciation: IPA/ˈpraɪmə ˈfeɪʃiˌi, ˈfeɪʃi, ˈfeɪʃə, ˈpri-/

US:USA pronunciation: respellingUSA pronunciation: respelling(prī′mə fā′shē ē′, fā′shē, fā′shə, prē′-)



WordReference Random House Learner's Dictionary of American English © 2026
pri•ma fa•ci•e /ˈpraɪmə ˈfeɪʃiˌi, ˈfeɪʃi, ˈfeɪʃə, ˈpri-/USA pronunciation  adv. 
  1. at first view;
    before investigation:He seemed to behave, at least prima facie, exactly like a murderer.

adj. [before a noun]
  1. obvious;
    self-evident.
  2. being enough to establish a fact:prima facie evidence.
See -prim-, -face-.
WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2026
pri•ma fa•ci•e  (prī′mə fā′shē ē′, fā′shē, fā′shə, prē′-),USA pronunciation 
  1. Foreign Termsat first appearance;
    at first view, before investigation.
  2. Foreign Termsplain or clear;
    self-evident;
    obvious.
  • Latin prīmā faciē
  • late Middle English 1425–75

Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::
prima facie /ˈpraɪmə ˈfeɪʃɪ/
  1. at first sight; as it seems at first
Etymology: 15th Century: from Latin, from prīmus first + faciēs face
'prima facie' also found in these entries (note: many are not synonyms or translations):
prima-facie evidence - color - prima facie case - prima facie evidence

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